"Labor" Day!

For the remainder of the weekend we were in Guttenberg at our family cabin.  When Lila got her playset for her birthday my Dad purchased a playset for up at the cabin as well.  He didn't purchase just any playset, he purchased a unit that rivals some Elementary schools!  This year the term Labor Day really meant labor, while putting together the family playset.

The kids always enjoy spending time together.  Even Carson and Cade do a good job of including the little kids in all the fun!  Meanwhile, the guys wasted no time getting to work, only to take a break to watch the "Island Golf Cart Parade!"



The building crew consisted of Mike, my Dad, Jason, my uncle Jeff and his two sons Tom and Nate.  They did a great job of dividing and conquering and before we knew it, it was time to take the framing to the backyard!

A little dance party to keep the kids occupied!

We were all up for supporting the guys as they worked hard on their project, but it was actually pretty chilly out at 65 degrees.  We all discussed how ironic it is that when summer is winding down 65 feels so cold, but when we are coming out of a cold winter, 65 feels like a heatwave!

We were also all together to celebrate Cade's 12th birthday!  He ordered up grilled chicken and pork, cheesy mashed potatoes and some peanut butter/chocolate brownies for the big celebration!  YUM!

"Happy Birthday, Cado"

The guys were bound and determined to get the playset as far as they possibly could, so with a little bit of daylight left they were back at it after dinner.  Lila also recognized that it was still light out and couldn't resist taking the pink, sparkly bike for a spin!

Monday morning the guys were up and outside right after breakfast.  Dad even recommended just calling it quits and enjoying the day, but they weren't stopping now, they wanted to see the playset finished or at least darn close!

The kids spent time playing outside on the trampoline...remember last 4th of July when Lila fell off?  I do, very vividly, but this time we were a lot more prepared.  She had a lot of fun with the big kids and they were very gentle as they jumped around her and she sat and giggled as she would get lifted into the air.

Giggle!  Giggle!  Giggle!

Back at it!

The girls decided to head over to the other side of the island to visit my Grandma at her cabin.  This cabin is very special to me as it is where I have a lot of my summer memories as a kid!  It was only appropriate to have Lila get her picture taken in front of the cabin sign!

When we got back from Grandma's it wasn't long before...the kids were swinging!!!  Woo hoo!  I am not sure who was more excited, the little ones or the guys working on the playset knowing that they were so close to completion!

The building crew!

When we left Guttenberg the playset wasn't 100% complete, but it was darn close!  The only parts left are the "cyclone" style slide that comes off the front, some details on the monkey bars and a few other details.  I was so impressed with the guys for getting as far as they did as this was a huge project!  It was a bonding experience for all of them and it will be fun for them to watch as the kids get so many years of enjoyment out of their hardwork!

A Happy Little Girl!

Do you remember this picture?!  This was Mike's truck on April 17th, the day befor Lila's 2nd birthday!  We went and picked up her playset at Menards! 

His overall goal was to have the playset completed before we left for Italy in June.  He pulled all the boards out and was going to begin working on the tower in the garage.  After mapping everything out he realized that we didn't receive the first 4 boards he needed in order to get started...so the playset quickly got pushed to the back burner with all the preparations for leaving town.

This weekend was the first weekend that we had a whole Saturday free to concentrate on getting the playset up so Lila can still enjoy it for a few months before the cold sets in!

Our yard before!

Mike's good friends Brad and Brandon were up for the builders challenge, off to work they went for the better part of the morning all the way through the afternoon.  Not one complaint out of these guys and it was HOT!!!  Lila spent the better part of her day admiring the progress from the window, just waiting to get out there and give the swings a test drive!

The final product!

The building crew + one very happy little girl!

Testing out the swings!



All play!

We were so thankful for the guys and their hardwork that we invited the ladies and kids to come and join us for playtime and dinner!  The kids always have so much fun together and tonight was no exception!  They were bouncing off the walls!  It is so much fun to watch!

 Lila had swimming lessons yesterday and they used kickboards for the first time!  She did great, caught right on and really enjoyed it.  She is getting to be pretty confident in the water!  She is growing up so quickly! 

The video below is of "Ring Around the Rosie" during swim lessons.  The parents take the kids around in a circle and on the "we all fall down!" they decide whether or not to take the kid all the way under the water.  Lila has been going under the water since we started lessons and I finally got it on tape!

We are trying to take advantage of every last bit of summer we have left!  We are looking forward to a few more exciting things yet to come, but you can bet any bit of downtime we have will be spent on our new playset!